Sports action shots are his specialty: capturing players while they're airborne, making the perfect catch or completing the perfect pass, with their cleats hovering above the grassy turf. He's been taking pictures for the Monroe Monitor & Valley News for nearly 30 years, preserving moments in time for all to remember.
But for now, Dan Armstrong has had to set aside his camera to focus on his health. After falling ill last year, physicians discovered a 6-by-7-centimeter tumor adjacent to his heart. After a biopsy revealed that it was cancerous, Dan was informed that he would need to undergo surgery on his chest; an operation that is procedurally similar to open-heart surgery.
It started in January 2014, when Dan came down with what he and his wife, Michele, initially thought was pneumonia. He ended up in the emergency room, where he was hydrated and treated for the flu. Unfortunately, after he returned home, his condition worsened drastically, until he could hardly breathe.
When he tried to walk upstairs to tell Michele that something was very wrong, he found he was unable to do so.
"I crawled all the way up the steps, and I said, "We've got to go back to the hospital,'GÇ¥ Dan recalled.
This time, emergency room physicians did a chest X-ray and a CT scan and discovered the golf-ball-sized tumor. Because the mass was in such close proximity to his heart, the biopsy was scheduled at Providence Regional Medical Center in Everett.
Dan was transported from Valley General in Monroe to Providence by ambulance.
"I was a firefighter for about 12 years with the Monroe Fire Department,GÇ¥ Dan said. "That was the first time I've ever ridden in the back as a patient.GÇ¥
The subsequent surgery, which took place last March, was quite invasive, and Dan's recovery has been problematic. Although he healed on the surface, internally, there have been complications. Currently, Dan is experiencing what medical professionals refer to as a "sternal nonunion,GÇ¥ meaning that the sides of his sternum have simply not grown back together the way they were supposed to.
"Nothing's getting any better. It feels like somebody's constantly got a pressure on my chest. I'm constantly short of breath,GÇ¥ Dan said. "When I'm sitting down, I'm pretty much OK, it's only when I get up.GÇ¥
Now facing another surgery to see if they can close the gap in his sternum, Dan and Michele are hopeful that once he recovers, they will finally be able to put his medical issues behind them. But first, they need to get through another procedure. Financially, things have been a challenge, because Dan, who is the primary provider in their household, hasn't been able to return to work.
Even with insurance coverage, the emergency room visits left them with thousands of dollars in debt.
"It was stressful,GÇ¥ Michele said. "We weren't really sure how we were going to make the mortgage.GÇ¥
Michele was able to pick up some part-time work and also took over Dan's job of 17 years: delivering the new issues of the Monroe Monitor and Valley News every Tuesday. And, Dan's step-daughter Leanne organized some fundraising opportunities.
Dan, who enjoys spending time with his grandchildren, finds that in his current condition, it's difficult to keep up with them. And he is unable to do what he loves the most; shooting award-winning photographs for the newspaper that he's worked for since the 1980s.
Longtime Monroe natives, Dan's family has been in Monroe since 1881.
"My parents graduated from Monroe High School in 1954, I graduated in 1974, my son graduated in "95, my daughter graduated in "99,GÇ¥ Dan said. "We've been here for a while.GÇ¥
A lifelong photography buff, Dan started pursuing professional photography after he got out of the military and returned to the Monroe area with his family. Interested in become an X-ray technician, he used his G.I. Bill to take courses at Everett Community College. While there, he also took a photojournalism class.
When he first approached the Monroe Monitor, the newspaper was owned by Howard Voland and was on West Main Street, one block west of where it's located now. Voland asked Dan if he knew how to do half-toning, an old-school method of achieving dimension in black-and-white printing. When Dan said that he didn't, Voland handed him a book and told him to learn it.
"They said that I could work in their darkroom and stuff like that,GÇ¥ Dan recalled. "So that's how I learned to do half-toning.GÇ¥
Back then, the newspaper was laid out manually.
"We used to cut out the articles and have big sheets of paper with lines on it,GÇ¥ Dan said. "Everything was in black-and-white.GÇ¥
Dan continued taking classes through both Everett and Bellevue community colleges, learning how to be an X-ray technician. In 1989, he got hired at the Seattle Veterans' Hospital and worked there up until he had his surgery last year. His schedule accommodated his photography work quite well; Dan worked 16-hour shifts every Saturday and Sunday, which left him open to cover local games and other sporting events during the week.
Throughout his photography career, Dan won numerous awards through the Washington Newspaper Publishers Association, an organization that recognizes community newspapers each year.
Married for seven years, Dan and Michele met online in 2007. They were both navigating life after divorce, and once they got to know each other, became fast friends. Michele had gone back to school to obtain a business degree, and once she graduated, the two decided to travel to Montana to mine for sapphires.
"It was a blast! It was so much fun to do that,Gǥ Michele said. "And actually it changed everythingGǪ Our whole life changed after that trip.Gǥ
Prior to that, she explained, they really were just friends. But after traveling to Montana together, their relationship evolved into something more. The two were married on Feb. 14, 2008, and since then, Michele and Dan have been practically inseparable. She took care of him as he recovered from his surgery last year, leaving his side as little as possible.
"He is absolutely my best friend,Gǥ Michele said. "When he had his last surgery, I never left. It was supposed to be a three-day thing, so I had my kids bring me clothes, because I never left him. I justGǪ I couldn't. I couldn't leave him.Gǥ
Dan's next surgery has been scheduled for Thursday, April 16. Surgeons will reopen his chest and use plates to close the gap in his sternum. Michele said they are grateful for all the prayers and support.
To make a contribution for Dan's medical expenses, visit-áhttp://www.gofundme.com/dantheman.
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